


Start Your Engines

by PyreFly77



Series: Start Your Engines [1]
Category: PAW Patrol
Genre: Backstory, Family, First Meetings, Flashback, Friendship, Gen, Memories, Mild Hurt/Comfort, OC Parent - Freeform, Origin Story, Original Character(s), Originally Posted on FanFiction.Net, Reminiscing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-03
Updated: 2021-03-15
Packaged: 2021-03-16 15:33:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 13,698
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29827083
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PyreFly77/pseuds/PyreFly77
Summary: Everyone needs a good cleanout sometimes. And Marshall has decided that he needs to do his sooner rather than later. But then, Marshall finds something special. Something long-forgotten. Something that stirs up memories of a time long-gone. And of his father.And perhaps as if fate itself willed it, the next day Chase is drawn to Marshall's side, and joins him in reminiscing about how they met. For the day that Chase met Marshall was the day that the Paw Patrol itself started to come into being...
Relationships: Chase & Marshall (PAW Patrol)
Series: Start Your Engines [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2192694
Kudos: 2





	1. A Message From Five Years Ago

"This the last of it?" Rocky asked, helping Marshall toss a large box into the back of the mixed breed's truck.

"It is for now." Marshall replied. "Once I get more junk, I'll let you know?"

"Yeah, totally. You know I can always find a use for whatever trash you and the others have lying around."

Having realised that his Pup House was starting to look like a paradise for Rocky, Marshall had decided that he probably needed to give it a thorough cleaning sooner rather than later, so he'd devoted the evening to doing exactly that. Marshall was still amazed at the junk he'd been hoarding throughout the months, and in some cases, years. In a lot of cases, he found himself unable to remember why he even had a lot of it in the first place. Not that Rocky would mind. The saying around the Lookout was that one pup's trash was Rocky's treasure.

"Even if it's a pair of... dentures?" Marshall fell silent with a perplexed expression. "Eww. The heck was I doing with these?" he continued internally.

"Don't bother trying to think about why you had these things, Marshall. You'll just make your head hurt." Rocky interjected with a smile. "Point is, I can find a use for anything. Why else do you think I have so much in my truck?"

"Well, you got me. Thanks a lot for taking it off my paws."

"Anytime, pal. You know what I always say: Don't lose it..." Rocky extended a paw towards Marshall with an expectant smirk.

"...oh! Re-use it!" It took a few seconds for Marshall to realise what was going on and finish Rocky's catchphrase, prompting the pair to share a laugh with one another.

"Anyway, I think I'll hit the hay for tonight." Marshall let off a yawn, realising that it was about to time to go to bed. "Thanks again, Rocky!"

"Don't let the bedbugs bite!" Rocky called after Marshall as the dalmatian walked back to his pup house.

An evening of cleaning was enough for Marshall to feel tired enough to fall asleep relatively quickly, but once he'd arrived back at his pup house, he realised that he would have to wait for a little longer, owing to some of the stuff he wanted to keep being strewn around on the floor. Sighing at his sleep being delayed, Marshall moved to put the scattered items back on their shelves, which now bulged considerably less than they once did.

From trophies to toys, now Marshall had far more of what he actually wanted to keep, and he could easily put it all into its rightful place now that his shelves had been given a thorough de-cluttering. Soon, there were only two items left on the floor: Marshall's teddy and what looked like…

"...a… photo?"

A small, brown frame lay face-down in front of the pup. Marshall didn't remember keeping photos in his pup house. And if he did, why was it stuffed away among his shelves rather than being on display? Why did he even have it? And for that matter, what was the photo even of? Something cool? Embarrassing? Deciding to bite the bullet and dispel the lingering anticipation within him, Marshall turned the photo to face him. But when he saw what the photo consisted of, he stopped dead in his tracks with a loud gasp.

What stared back at him was all too familiar. A very young human and a pair of even-younger pups. More specifically, a human with brown, spiked hair wearing a broad, happy smile with his arms around a german shepherd and a dalmatian.

Marshall placed his paw near the tiny dalmatian with the huge, toothy grin. The brief period of doubt in his mind was quickly ended when he saw what was unmistakably the Lookout in the background. That pup was unquestionably him.

After a few seconds, Marshall shifted his focus to the other pup in the picture. The german shepherd with a face adorned with a wide, confident smirk. Given everything else in the picture, that pup could only be Chase. It took a little longer for Marshall to realise this, in part thanks to Chase being slightly chubbier than he was now, leaving Marshall wondering if they really got that much of a workout on rescues.

Then there was the much-younger human. Brown eyes, brown hair and an aura of leadership about him. There was no doubt; that was Ryder. And yet, he looked so young. Marshall knew that the Paw Patrol had been around for a long time, but he'd put a lot of the happenings of the far-past out of his mind, so this window into the past came a huge surprise for him. And now all of the past happenings of the then-nascent Paw Patrol were coming back to him.

Chase and Ryder encouraging him as he trained with his new gear. Playing with the pair of them from dawn till dusk. The pair's first rescues. Meeting the other pups. Marshall quickly found himself sentimentally hugging the photo with a big smile as these happy memories flashed through his head and a warm feeling filled his stomach. The memories continued to play in his mind as he turned around in his pup house, laid on the floor with the photo still in his arms and closed his eyes for the night.

That night's dreams were like a night of rewatching a selection of cherished, nostalgic movies. Except Marshall was playing the part of himself. His failures. His successes. He relived these moments from his first years in vivid detail, leading Marshall to sleep more peacefully than he had in a long time.

The day had dawned, and naturally, early bird Chase was the first one awake. As was tradition for him, he moved to each pup's house, waking each of them from their slumber. He did experiment with his megaphone for a week, but the prank the pups pulled in retaliation for scaring them all awake for a week still haunted his own dreams. Chase was stubborn, but he could take a hint.

Traditionally, he'd wake Marshall up last anyway, but upon seeing how happy he was in his sleep, the shepherd gave a warm smile. Chase felt a little guilty about having to wake him, but soon decided that duty called. This wasn't a day for them to sleep in, after all. Chase decided to wake him up gently, but paused briefly when he noticed the odd, rectangular object in his arms.

"Wonder what the story is behind this?" Chase thought before leaning in and licking Marshall's cheek.

"Marshall..." Chase whispered between licks. "Hey, Marshall… Wakey-wakey… It's time to get up..."

"Mmmmrrrgghhh… Ugghhh… Chaaaaaase..." Marshall moaned. "I was having a nice dream..."

Chase giggled as Marshall slowly came back from his groggy state. "Yeah, you looked really peaceful. I didn't really wanna wake you."

"I kinda wish you hadn't…" Marshall shuffled around where he lay, only to feel the photo in his arms from last night. "Oh yeah… But I'm glad you did. You wanna know what I was dreaming about?"

"Does it have to do with what you've got there?"

"Oh yeah. Feast your eyes."

"Huh? Some kinda phot- ...oh, my-"

In nearly the same instant Marshall had turned the photo around to show Chase, the shepherd had gone rigid and wide-eyed, finally providing Marshall the answer to how Chase might react to seeing a window into the past such as this. There was a deafening silence in the air as Chase touched his paw to the image, likely going over all of the same details he did last night.

"Where… Wh-where did you find this?" Chase whispered in awe.

"Dunno." Marshall replied. "I was just cleaning my pup house last night and found it on the floor before I went to bed."

"I remember Ryder gave us our own copies of this… but I lost mine years ago..."

"Wait. He did?"

"It was a long time ago, Marshall. Do you remember?"

"Honestly, until I found this photo, I'd forgotten a lot of it. It all came back at once. I even dreamed about the times when it was just the two of us."

Chase soon realised that he was probably going to be there for a long time, squeezing in next to Marshall and lying down close to him.

"Like what? The first time we rescued Chickaletta, say?"

"That was one of them. Heh, I still remember you catching yourself with your net that day." Marshall gave an amused grin.

"Says the pup who needed ice for his butt after falling down his ladder..." Chase responded with a smirk, prompting laughter from the pair of them.

"Man..." Marshall turned his attention back to the photo. "We were so young back then… I can't believe we've been the Paw Patrol for so long."

"I was so pudgy back then." Chase stared at the confident-looking image of his younger self. "Five years can really change a pup."

"And a human." Marshall added. "Ryder looked so… innocent back then."

"Well he was only five years old. But even back then when we had less emergencies and more time to play, he was still really smart..."

"And as kind as he is today… I should know, after all."

"Come to think of it, this picture got taken to mark the founding of the Paw Patrol, right?"

"Yep, right after I joined… And… a little while before my dad left..." Marshall's expression turned from one of blissful nostalgia to one of vague sadness.

"Oh yeah..." Chase added quietly, sympathetically nuzzling Marshall. "I'm sorry we haven't found him."

"Hey, don't be." Marshall replied, licking Chase in response. "I mean, if I stayed with him, I woulda missed a lot more."

"Heck, you almost did..."

Marshall knew that Chase wasn't wrong. Way back when he was only one year old, Chase was only two and the Paw Patrol was nothing more than a gleam in Ryder's eye, Marshall remembered how lucky he was that he had the life that he had now. For had things gone the slightest bit differently, Marshall's life would be nowhere near the same as it was today.

"It all started when you came and talked to me at the pup park, right?" Marshall asked, thinking back to five years ago.

"Almost." Chase replied with his mind drifting away to a slightly earlier period. "We weren't in Adventure Bay very long, then..."

* * *

_Five years ago, Adventure Bay wasn't greatly different to how it was in the present day. The town was certainly smaller in terms of area, but the sense of community was undoubtedly still there. But with the recently-completed construction of a large, slender, white tower on an isolated outcropping, this sleepy coastal town was about to be forever changed._

_At the base of it stood a small boy of five years, staring in wonderment at what was going to be the new home for him and his companion, a two year-old german shepherd with a black collar, adorned with a badge carrying the emblem of a yellow sheriff star on a deep blue background. Ryder stood as the sole inheritor of his grandfather's immense fortune, being the orphaned child of his grandfather's offspring, but in truth, given Ryder's unusual intellectual aptitude at only one year of age, his grandfather couldn't have asked for a better candidate to lead the eclectic new organisation he was planning._

_And Ryder was given his start with the present he received for his fourth birthday. A small german shepherd pup. The two bonded near-immediately. The pup hadn't lead much of a life before being adopted, being raised on a quiet farm by a kindly breeder. But he was described as having more energy and grit than a dog several times his age. Ryder and his grandfather debated names for a long time, before they eventually settled on one that they both agreed on: Chase._

" _I can't believe we're gonna be living here..." Ryder said in amazement, unafraid of the prospect of living by himself with only a group of canines for company. As much as his grandfather loved him, his duties meant that he was scarcely around._

" _It's a little like grandpa's tower. But smaller." Chase observed._

" _Maybe it'll get bigger when we get older?"_

" _But we don't even know any other pups! Can we go to the park? Pleeeeease?" Chase was eager to get to know other pups, given that the only other pups he'd known were his litter-mates, who he didn't get to interact with very much, owing to their quick adoptions._

" _Sorry, Chase, but I've still gotta go check out all the gear and blueprints grandpa left me." Chase looked down and whined at Ryder's response, making a show out of giving him a sad, dewy-eyed look. "But I'll tell you what. Why don't you go down to the park and see if you can meet any pups there?"_

_Chase perked up immediately._

" _Remember that you've got your collar tag and I've got this… Pup Pad thing." Ryder punctuated his explanation by drawing the recently-created device from his pocket. "Grandpa left me the instructions for it. If you need me, you just gotta tap your tag. Got it?"_

" _OK! See ya later!" Chase barked happily, sprinting off towards the park they passed on the way to the tower as fast as his tiny legs could carry him._

* * *

"Wow..." Marshall said. "...I'd forgotten that you begged like that."

"Hey, I was young!" Chase shot back with an embarrassed face. "And pretty stupid, too!"

"Still, the thought of you with puppy-dog eyes now..." Marshall burst into giggles at the thought of Chase begging, earning him a chop to the skull from the embarrassed shepherd. Ironically, this only made Marshall laugh harder.

"Anyway, thinking about it..." Chase went on. "...it's a surprise that Ryder let me go out by myself."

"Hey, Adventure Bay was and still is a pretty safe town."

"Still, that was a lot of stock to put in a town's reputation. We didn't know anyone here."

"Maybe he trusted you not to get into trouble?"

"Ha ha ha. Maybe. But it wasn't long until I found trouble."

Chase smirked at Marshall, who got an offended look before delivering a chop of his own to Chase, making him burst out laughing.

"Anyway, that was when I met you, right?" Marshall attempted to steer the conversation back on track.

"Yeah, it was around then." Chase replied as his laughter died down. "I'd just gotten to the pup park. Kinda amazing how little that place changed…"

* * *

_To Chase's disappointment, the pup park was sadly quiet. Some people were there with their pups, with a couple sat to the side as they watched their pups play, but beyond that, nothing. Chase decided to survey the park, wondering there was any pup in particular who seemed friendly or wanted someone else to play with. But a lot of the pups seemed very engrossed in what they were doing or were very involved with others. Chase started to lose hope, until from atop the play gym, something caught his eye._

_It was a blue-eyed dalmatian pup laying on his belly and staring off into the distance. Small, black spots adorned his fur, but the most eye-catching thing about him was his lack of a collar._

_Chase blinked. "A stray?" he thought._

_Chase couldn't get a read on his facial expression. It was blank. Vacant. More-or-less emotionless. The pup seemed to be off in his own little world, but then again, perhaps his expression was a muted cry for help? In all likelihood, that pup needed a friend. And so did Chase. With a deep breath, Chase walked through the playing pups towards the play gym._


	2. Meet the Dalmatians

_Chase's body was wracked with anticipation as he climbed to the top of the play gym to greet this mysterious pup. How would he react to being spoken to? Was he nice? Mean? Did he want to be spoken to? Did he want to be left alone? Regardless of the answers to these questions, Chase had to try. He was so busy pondering the answers to these questions that he nearly found himself walking off the edge of the play gym behind the dalmatian._

_Chase stared at the white, speckled back of the pup for a while. He was completely unmoving, not even reacting to his presence. All kinds of things ran through Chase's head to try and start a conversation, but in the end, he decided to try and play it casually, walking up just behind the dalmatian._

" _Hi, there!" Chase greeted cheerfully._

" _GYAAAAAAAHHH!" The dalmatian screamed, jumping what had to be a foot in the air._

" _BWAAAAAAAAGH! Chase leapt backwards with a scream of his own, startled by the pup's reaction to him, soon finding himself at the edge of the play gym while the pup landed teetering on the opposite edge._

" _Whwhoawhoawhoooaaaaa- OOF!" The dalmatian wobbled and thrashed around for a short while in a bid to keep his balance, before failing and plummeting off the play gym and landing heavily on his back._

" _Whwhwhoaaaa- UGH!" Chase didn't take long to follow suit, landing with a thud on the opposite side._

" _I'm good!" the voice came from around the other side._

" _Urgh… Ah! Oh, no! No, no, no, no!"_

_Chase slowly got to his feet, before remembering that he may have just hurt the pup and bolting upright, forgetting the pain of the impact and running for the other side of the play gym where the dalmatian lay, who looked surprisingly relaxed, all things considered._

" _Hey! Are you OK? I'm really, really sorry!" Chase yelled as he ran up to the dalmatian, who was now paying full attention to him._

" _Oh, I'm fine. I was only thinking. You just spooked me, is all." The dalmatian replied calmly, rolling to his feet._

" _I'm really sorry I hurt you! I was just trying to say 'hi'!"_

" _Hurt me? Don't be silly, I crash into stuff all the time! I'm more worried about you."_

" _Me? Well, my back's a little sore, but I'll be OK."_

" _That's good." The dalmatian replied with a smile. "So. You wanted to say 'hi'? You new here? I don't remember seeing you around."_

" _You're right. I was trying to make some friends. Me and my owner just moved in."_

" _Aww, really? Well then..." The dalmatian extended his paw towards the shepherd for a high-five. "My name is Marshall. What's yours?"_

_Chase stared for a second, before beaming and returning the high-five. Something told him he'd just made a great find indeed. "I'm Chase! It's nice to meet you!" he replied cheerfully._

" _Well then, Chase. You wanna play?"_

" _Do I?!"_

" _In that case..." as if like lightning, Marshall's paw lashed out and tapped Chase on the shoulder before he turned around and bolted off. "Tag! Catch me if you can!"_

" _Hey! No fair!" Chase yelled after the fleeing dalmatian before taking off in pursuit._

_What followed was some of the most fun Chase had ever had in his short life. He pursued Marshall all around the park and competed with him to see who could go highest on the swing set. They even had the confidence to play rough with one another after a while. Even though Marshall seemed to fall over an awful lot, strangely, he never seemed hurt, and eventually, Chase learned to laugh with him whenever it happened. Soon, the two lay next to each other in the same spot atop the play gym, breathing heavily after all of the exercise they got._

" _That… was… so much fun..." Chase panted._

" _Yeah… I don't think I've… enjoyed playing with… another pup so much..." Marshall wheezed._

" _You play with many others?"_

" _Not really. I used to play with the other fire dogs, but there weren't many my age."_

"' _Used to'? You don't now?"_

" _Not anymore. There aren't any fire dogs left but papa. Heck, there aren't any firefighters left. They all had to leave."_

" _Really? Wait, I noticed you aren't wearing a collar. Does that have something to do with it?"_

" _Yeah… sorry." Chase noticed Marshall looking away ashamedly._

" _Huh? What are you apologising for?" Chase tilted his head curiously._

" _I never said I was a stray… And usually people and pups try to avoid me when they know I'm a stray..."_

_Chase immediately laid a paw across Marshall's back as his face changed to one of mortal offense. "What?! What kinda way is that to treat a pup so nice?! If they did that to you, then they're not worth it to start with! You're probably the nicest pup here and they try to ignore you?! Ugh! So selfish!"_

_Marshall responded with a wide-eyed look of astonishment. It took him a few seconds to pluck up a response._

" _Th-that… That's probably the nicest thing anyone's ever said to me..." Marshall stammered._

" _Not many people talk to you, do they?" Chase asked with complete sincerity._

" _Well, no, but… you just did... And… I'm… really happy I met you..."_

* * *

"I still can't believe people would do that to a stray..." Chase spat.

"A stray's just a pup in need of help more than ever..." Marshall mused, recalling something Chase told him a while ago.

"Exactly! And people turn their noses up?! How could they?!"

"Even the strays who attack people need help, right?"

"ESPECIALLY them!"

"Heh. Some things about you haven't changed. Still so easily fired up..." Marshall gave a fond grin to his friend.

"Just like you." Chase returned Marshall's grin. "And heck, some things about you haven't changed from all those years ago."

* * *

" _So, Marshall. What do you say?" Chase extended his other paw towards Marshall. "Friends?"_

_Marshall immediately reached out and joined paws with Chase. "Friends!" Marshall happily replied in a near-shout._

_Chase smiled widely and nuzzled his newfound friend, who eagerly returned the favor. Luck really was in the cards for him today. He'd come to the pup park in hopes of making a new friend. But something that day told him that he'd found something more. He couldn't wait to introduce him to Ryder. And considering the loud growl that just came from Chase's stomach, this would probably be happening sooner rather than later._

" _You sound kinda hungry..." Marshall observed._

" _We played a lot today, huh?" Chase replied. "Wanna come back with me for some food?"_

_Marshall blinked. "Are you sure? You've already been so nice to me today..."_

" _So what's a little more, huh? Besides, my owner's super-cool. He won't mind at all."_

_Marshall paused. "...that… would be great. Thank you, Chase."_

" _Yes!" Chase pumped one of his paws. "I don't live far away! C'mon!"_

_Marshall was about to get up and follow Chase, until a low howl come from the bushes behind them. While Chase froze up, afraid that something might attack them, Marshall instead got a look of sadness._

" _Awww… That's my papa… He wants me to come back with him." Marshall moaned._

" _Your dad's here?" Chase asked._

" _Yep. I think I was supposed to be back ten minutes ago, actually… He's probably gonna be upset..."_

" _It's OK, I'll explain everything..." Chase reassured, sad that he'd have to bid Marshall goodbye. Until an idea formed in his head. "Hey… Why don't you have your dad come with us?"_

" _Huh? Chase, that really is too much…"_

" _You kidding?! My owner loves dogs! He's not gonna mind!"_

_Marshall blinked. He wasn't really aware that it was possible for a pup to have as big a heart as Chase. And his owner sounded amazing! Now he was hoping that his father would say yes to dinner with him. The urgency to speak with him grew, however, when another howl came from the bushes._

" _I hope he says yes..." Marshall said._

" _So do I..." Chase added, as he followed Marshall to the bushes._

_The distance between the play gym and the bushes wasn't anything too vast, so the two pups were able to reach the bushes in a short time. Stepping through the leafy growths, they came to a clearing where a large, slender adult dalmatian was waiting for the pair of them. With blue eyes and lacking a collar, albeit with a slightly different spot pattern, the dog looked like a bigger version of Marshall. Upon laying eyes on Marshall, the worried expression on the dog's face changed to one of relief._

" _Ah, there you are, Marshall! Where have you been?" The larger dalmatian's low, slightly-raspy voice carried an air of disapproving fatherly worry, but was somehow still very gentle and pleasing to listen to. "You know I expect you back at the firehouse by six!"_

" _Sorry, papa!" Marshall sheepishly apologised. "I didn't know it was so late! But I met someone new in town!"_

" _Did you?" The larger dalmatian cast his eyes towards the unfamiliar german shepherd. "Ah. My, my, so you did..." The dog smiled broadly. "Hello, pup. I haven't seen you around here, before. What's your name?"_

" _My name is Chase, sir. Good to meet you." Chase replied formally._

"' _Sir'?!" The dalmatian abruptly burst out laughing. "Good grief, boy! How old do you think I am?!"_

" _Oh… I'm… sorry..." Chase stuttered guiltily._

" _I'm only teasing you!" The dalmatian laughed heartily before turning to his offspring. "Honestly, Marshall, where did you find this one?!"_

" _Well, he found me, actually." Marshall replied._

" _Har har har! Well, you can tell me about it later." The larger dog turned back to Chase. "But where are my manners? My name is Ash. And as you just heard, I'm Marshall's dad. The pleasure is all mine, young pup."_

_Chase somehow felt more at ease after Ash introduced himself. After the sad story that Marshall had told him, he was afraid that perhaps his father would be a horrible dog somehow. But seeing that he was a boisterous joker relaxed him considerably. Maybe Marshall had someone who loved him, at least._

" _A little quiet, hm?" Ash gently inquired._

" _Well, 'a lot' quiet..." Marshall interjected. "He spooked me when he came and talked to me!"_

* * *

"Wonder if that's why Ryder chose you as the super spy pup?" Marshall half-jokingly inquired.

"Hey, you're better at scaring people than I am!" Chase retorted.

"What's THAT supposed to mean?!" Marshall huffed.

"Dunno." Chase shrugged off Marshall's question with a glib smirk. "ANYWAY..."

* * *

_Marshall and Chase went on to explain to the older dalmatian about their meeting that day and about how Chase had just moved in. Ash listened in eagerly, amazed that such an upstanding pup could just move in and befriend his introverted son so easily, while at the same time, trying to avoid thinking about the news that he had to deliver to his son. Initially, Ash was excited to tell Marshall. But now, he wasn't so sure._

" _...so sir- er, Mr. Ash…" Chase went on._

" _Ah, ah, ahh!" Ash playfully scolded. "Almost caught you using 'sir' again..."_

" _Sorry..."_

" _Har har! Just a little joke, pup. Go on?"_

" _Well, I was hoping that Marshall could come back with me to get some food from my owner, but… We were wondering if… maybe you wanted to come with?"_

_Ash's face went completely blank with wide eyes. He and his son had been largely ignored ever since his home and family fell apart around him, and now a random pup was offering him AND his son food and company? The shock was almost too much for Ash's brain to take._

" _Oh, no…" Ash found himself replying automatically. "I… I couldn't..."_

" _Please, papa? Pretty please?" Marshall tugged at his father's leg with a pleading look._

" _Oh, Marshall, by all means, you can go with him, but…" Ash turned back to Chase. "...I couldn't possibly take advantage of you both like that."_

" _You won't be, Mr. Ash!" Chase insisted. "My owner really loves dogs! He'd love to meet you! Please?"_

" _Well, I..." Ash stammered, before he noticed Chase giving him a sad, dewy-eyed look. "Oh, no. Don't you dare. That's cheating." He looked over to Marshall to see him giving him the same look. "Oh for goodness' sake, no! Don't you start as well, Marshall!"_

_No matter where Ash looked, the deep, misty eyes of a pair of young pups burned into his soul. He struggled whenever Marshall started to beg, but seeing an extra pup doing so was destroying his resistance in a hurry._

" _Please, let me think-! There's no… need… don't… oh, what's the point?!" Ash finally conceded. "Alright, alright, I'll go with you two! Just please stop giving me those eyes!"_

* * *

"Eugh, glad I'm out of THAT phase..." Chase shuddered.

"I actually forgot how to do that, since I don't have to do it anymore to get food. Kinda glad I did…" Marshall sadly added.

Chase rubbed his friend's back. "Hey. Don't worry about it. It's all in the past now. You won't have to do it again."

Marshall smiled fondly in response. "I know."

* * *

_The pups cheered. "You won't regret this Mr. Ash!" Chase cheered._

" _I hope not! You put enough effort into convincing me!" Ash retorted with a grin._

" _So, Chase." Marshall interjected. "Where do you live?"_

" _A big tower on an island not far from here. I'll show you!"_

" _Wait, what?!" Marshall shouted in surprise._

" _Now just a second, here!" Ash added. "THAT'S what that tower is all about? That's your home?"_

" _Yeah, it's a little hard to believe for us, too." Chase replied. "But I'm not lying!"_

" _I mean, I saw that tower under construction, but I never figured out what it was about. Not many newspapers in Adventure Bay, after all. It's got to have more of a function than just your house, though?"_

" _Yeah. My owner will explain everything. C'mon!" Chase turned away and started to head towards the bushes._

" _Well, my boy." Ash whispered in Marshall's ear. "I don't think we can afford to miss this, do you?"_

" _Heck no!" Marshall replied. "Coming, Chase!" the smaller dalmatian swiftly charged after Chase._

" _Where does he get all that energy?" Ash mused to himself. "Oh yeah, of course." He picked up speed to follow after his son. "Wait up, boys!"_

_But almost as soon as he'd gotten up to speed, Ash attempted to leap over some branches and completely failed, ensnaring his back paws in them and trapping himself. With a grumble of frustration, Ash strained as he attempted to pull himself free, but applied too much force and yanked himself free of the branches hard enough to send him rolling forward._

" _Whoaaaaaaaaaaa- ohhhhhh boy! OOF!"_

_Ash came to a stop with an almighty crash into an lemon tree, leaving him lying belly-up with the tree's produce scattered all over the top of him._

" _I'm good!" Ash declared._

* * *

"So THAT'S where you get it!" Chase exclaimed. "I always had a feeling your clumsiness ran in the family!"

"Not just that." Marshall replied. "Apparently I've got mom's jokes. Dad told me so."

"Wow. Didn't realise you took after your folks that much."

"Yeah… They were the best..." Marshall replied wistfully.

Chase rubbed Marshall's back again. "We'll find your dad some day, Marshall. I know it."

"Just like we'll find your breeder, I hope."

Chase was momentarily taken aback, not expecting Marshall to bring that up again. "Maybe… Maybe..."


	3. A Broken Family

_As Chase had said, the distance between the pup park and tower wasn't far at all. It wasn't much in the way of walking distance for Marshall and Ash, who were used to walking across all of Adventure Bay in the search for food. And with Chase filling them in with stories about Ryder, it didn't take long for the bridge to be all that separated all three canines from the slim, white tower that Chase apparently called home._

" _My goodness, Chase." Ash began. "You certainly live in the lap of luxury, don't you?"_

" _Ryder's grandpa's really rich. He had this built for us." Chase replied._

" _Grandpa, eh?" Ash briefly wondered who on Earth Ryder's grandfather could be as they crossed the bridge. Soon, they arrived in front of the tower, where a small, brown-haired boy was sat in a chair set up outside, pawing at an odd-looking device with an inquisitive look on his face._

" _Hey, Ryder!" Chase shouted, grabbing the boy's attention. "I'm back!"_

" _Oh, Chase!" Ryder said, getting up and leaving the device in his seat. "Welcome back! How-"_

_Ryder swiftly cut his sentence short upon seeing the pair of dalmatians his pup had brought home with him. He realised that it seemed that Chase's insistence on finding new friends had paid off._

" _Well, that was quick, Chase!" Ryder said with a note of amusement, before kneeling down in front of Marshall. "Hello, little pup. What's your name?" Ryder asked gently._

" _I'm Marshall!" Marshall cheerily replied. "Are you Ryder?"_

" _I am." Ryder replied. "Has Chase told you about me?"_

" _Yeah! He talked the whole way about how cool you were!"_

" _Wha-?! No I didn't!" Chase huffed, looking away in embarrassment._

" _Chase! Really!" Ryder huffed back, blushing furiously._

" _Now, now, Marshall." Ash interrupted. "Don't go embarrassing the boy, now." Ash gave a cheeky grin. "That's my job."_

* * *

"Yep. Couldn't keep your mouth shut then, either." Chase mused.

"Honesty is the best policy. That's what I was taught." Marshall countered.

* * *

" _Ah, and what about you? What's your name?" Ryder asked, turning to the older dalmatian._

" _Ash. Call me Ash. Marshall's dad. Nice to meet you." Ash replied._

" _They're both strays." Chase explained. "We were getting pretty hungry. I was hoping we could give them some food?"_

"' _Strays'?!" Ryder echoed. "Well why didn't you say so?! Please, come in, both of you!"_

_Ryder hurriedly directed all three of the dogs indoors. Only as they passed him by did he notice the lack of collars on Marshall and Ash. Ryder hated seeing dogs with no owners to turn to, especially when those dogs were as young as Marshall. Deep down, the urge to do something about it stirred within Ryder. He silently thanked his grandfather for passing down some of his altruism to him, before retrieving a large sack of dog food from the cupboards and filling three bowls with it._

" _Well, guys..." Ryder began. "Have at it!"_

_Surprisingly, Chase was the only one who took Ryder up on his offer, running for the bowl and scarfing down the food within. Marshall stared for a while at the food bowl, wondering if it was really OK to eat it. The pup stole a quick glance at the boy, who smiled and gestured towards the bowl expectently. This finally convinced Marshall to move forward and slowly start eating. The slowness didn't last, as he soon kept pace with Chase. The only one left who had to yet to eat was Ash, who continued to stare at the food in bewilderment._

" _Ash, was it?" Ryder asked. "What's wrong? Aren't you hungry?"_

" _Hm?" Ash replied. "O-oh, yeah, of course I'm hungry. We haven't found anything decent to eat in a long time. But… Is it really alright for me to eat this? I mean, I don't want to impose or anything..."_

" _No, no! I insist!" Ryder said. "You aren't imposing at all. We have plenty of food, and like you've said, you haven't found anything good in days. Please. Go ahead and eat."_

_Ash paused for a little while longer before replying. "Ryder… You're too kind." With these words, Ash finally walked forward and joined the two pups in their meal. He ate at a more controlled pace than the other two, but eating actual dog food felt slightly surreal for him after so long of eating whatever he and Marshall were able to get their paws on. As he ate, thoughts ran through the dalmatian's head. Was there hope for his son with someone this kind having set up shop?_

_After their meal, Ryder decided to get to know the two dalmatians better. He'd sat down on a beanbag in front of the dogs to listen to their stories. Chase explained at length how he found Marshall and played the day away with him, along with some of the traits they had in common. But then Chase got to what Marshall told him about being a stray, and how other humans and dogs had avoided him. While Chase turned angry, Ryder's heart ached for the two._

" _So… if you don't mind me asking, how long have you two been strays?" Ryder asked as gently as he could._

" _Well… I-I, er..." Marshall stammered sadly._

" _Shhh. It's alright, my boy." Ash whispered comfortingly, gently nuzzling his son. "I'll handle this part, I think. Why don't you go sit with Chase?"_

" _...kay..." Marshall quietly got up off the floor and sauntered over to Chase, sitting down next to him. Chase placed a paw on his back._

" _Well, Ryder..." Ash began solemnly. "We've been strays for a few months, now. And the story… well, it's not a pretty one. We used to have an owner. I don't know if you've seen the Adventure Bay Firehouse while you've been here?"_

" _Ummm..." Ryder put a finger to his bottom lip. "Don't think so."_

" _Eh, it doesn't matter too much. But the bottom line is, that's where we all used to live. Me, our owner and a whole bunch of other firefighters and firedogs. And a year and a few months ago? Me and my mate, Willow, had a puppy together. And that puppy is sat right over there."_

_Ash pointed to Marshall with a fond smile, causing the pup to look down in embarrassment. Ash laughed softly before continuing his story._

" _Anyway, everything looked so good for a while. But then things started going wrong. I don't suppose you've spoken to Mayor Goodway yet?"_

" _Not yet." Ryder replied. "But she's on the list of people to talk to."_

" _Good. She's a very nice woman. If a bit, well, scatterbrained. I'm sure you'll like her. But she hasn't been in office for very long. Only about a month right now. But I'm surprised she even accepted the job after the budget cuts the last mayor imposed on us. Brought the town to wrack and ruin..."_

" _You know, now that I think about it..." Ryder interrupted. "Where's the police station around here? And I don't think I've seen a single coastguard near the water, either."_

" _Oh there used to be plenty of them." Ash explained. "But I mentioned budget cuts, right? They hit a lot of sectors around the town… But our public services took the hardest hit. It all started about last year. The firehouse used to be such a lively place… Always people there, laughing and talking, always ready to help someone when there was a fire. But then the cuts started to bite and people… well, they started to disappear. With no money, the firehouse couldn't afford to pay them, so they had to move away. It was slow, but there were less and less firefighters and firedogs as the months rolled on, and then in the end… there was nothing left. And it wasn't just us. The Adventure Bay Sheriff's Office went through the same thing. So did the coastguard. Sheriff's Office got bulldozed a couple months back, actually."_

" _So THAT'S why grandpa chose here..." Ryder whispered to himself._

" _Did you say something there, Ryder?" Ash asked._

" _Huh? Oh, er, no. Nothing. Go on?"_

" _So we've been living in the old firehouse, scrounging whatever food we can. For the past few months, its just been me and Marshall. The last firefighter here had to move away. He was the only one willing to take us, but the apartment he was moving to had a 'no pets' policy… I still remember the poor guy's face..."_

" _Man..." was all Ryder could bring himself to whisper. "But what happened to your owner? He didn't just leave you, did he?"_

" _No! Goodness, no. He'd never do that to us. Well..." Ash's face fell further. "Not on purpose, anyway..."_

" _What do you- Oh, no. Please. Don't tell me..."_

_Ryder clasped his hands over his mouth in horror as Marshall began to whimper. Chase decided to wrap his arms around the dalmatian, realising that what was about to be revealed was very likely not going to be pleasant to hear._

" _Sorry to say, but yeah. One day, there was a fire. And not just any fire. This was a BAD one. My owner went out to try and extinguish it, but it was only him and three others… that was when people had started leaving and we stopped taking care of our equipment…" Ash squeezed his eyes shut at the painful memories. "...no-one came back."_

" _Oh, Ash… That's so… I'm so sorry..." Ryder whispered, sniffling a little._

" _Don't be." Ash solemly replied. "I'm not even finished."_

_Those four words were all it took to fill Ryder with dread. How could it possibly get worse?_

" _I mentioned my mate, Willow? Well, we all took the news of the firefighter's failure badly. But Willow… She took it the worst… She stopped eating, she stopped talking, and overall just stopped taking care of herself. In about a day or two… well… she passed away… She… basically died of a broken heart..."_

_That depressing story was all it took for the room to fall as silent as a tomb. Ryder stared at the dalmatian in horror. Ash simply couldn't keep tears from rolling down his cheeks at the painful memories of his departed love._

_But Marshall was taking it the worst of all. By now, he'd thrown his arms around Chase and was fully crying into his new friend's fur while the shepherd hugged him tightly. The poor pup had barely gotten to know his mother, and have her taken from him at a mere few months of age was always something that upset him. And Ash's reminder of this had sent Marshall over the edge once again._

* * *

Chase had to stop in his tracks in order to collect himself, having forgotten how depressing that particular part of the tale was. But his attention was caught by the sound of Marshall sniffling beside him.

"Marshall?" Chase gently asked. "You OK?"

"...y-yeah… I… I'm fine..." Marshall whimpered, slowly picking himself back up from crying.

"Oh, man… I'm really sorry… I shouldn't have gone that far… I forgot thinking about your mom still hurts..." Chase apologetically licked Marshall's cheek while moving closer to him.

"No… It's fine…" Marshall quietly rested his head on Chase's side. "I'd forgotten about her, you know? Maybe remembering her is a good thing… I don't remember very much about her… But I don't wanna forget her, either."

"If you're sure… Remember, come talk to someone if you're feeling down about your folks, OK?"

"Of course… Thanks, Chase..." Marshall smiled softly at his friend before continuing on with the memories.

* * *

" _Ash, I… I'm so..." Ryder couldn't even complete his sentence before the urge to hug the embattled dalmatian grew to a point that he couldn't contain it. Ryder walked forward and dropped to his knees, grabbing the dalmatian in as big a hug as he could muster._

_Ash stood there for a few seconds, still trying to process what was really going on, before moving in closer and sitting down, shutting his eyes and letting Ryder hug him. Ash let a few more tears spill forth from his eyes at the sudden kindness he was being shown by Ryder. He didn't think he'd ever have a shoulder to cry on like this again until now._

_Marshall and Chase continued to hold each other as Marshall audibly sobbed over the loss of his mother while Ryder held Ash in his arms._

" _Pups..."_

" _Boys..."_

_Ryder and Ash had gotten the two's attention by simultaneously calling to the pair of them. The two looked up to see that Ryder was beckoning them into the hug and Ash was giving them a sad smile. The tears intensified for the pups as they got to their feet and leapt at Ryder, who gladly welcomed them into the embrace._

_All four of them hugged and wept in silence at the depressing story that Ash had just shared. Ash was always uncomfortable sharing that story anyway, but he almost bit his tongue since Marshall was still in the room. But then, Ryder didn't seem like the judgemental type. And indeed he wasn't. Ash's admiration for Ryder continued to grow. Which made the nagging news at the back of his head weigh even more heavily on him._

_Soon, everyone had calmed down enough to speak once more. And it was Ryder who broke the silence._

" _Er… I'm sorry about the sudden hug, Ash."_

"' _Sorry'?! Har, you kidding?!" Ash suddenly laughed. "I don't think anyone's been this good to us in months, boy! I should be apologising to you for depressing you like that after feeding us!"_

_Ryder snickered a little. Now that Ash had that out of his system, he was back to his boisterous self again. Quite the about-face._

" _Well, you seem better anyway. What about you, Marshall?"_

" _Yeah…" Marshall whispered. "A little better."_

" _See?" Ryder went on. "If you feel better, that makes it all worth it."_

" _You really are something else, Ryder..." Ash whispered_

" _I am?"_

" _In all my years as a firedog, I wish all our leaders were half as kindhearted as you..."_

" _Aww, well, I don't know..." Ryder sheepishly replied. "You know, there's still some time left in the day if Chase and Marshall want to play some more?"_

_The pups perked up. "Yeah!" They both yelled._

_Ryder laughed. "Well… I've set up Pup Pup Boogie upstairs..."_

" _Seriously?!" Chase barked. "Thanks, Ryder! C'mon, Marshall! This is gonna be great!"_

" _Huh? Pup Pup Boogie?" Marshall echoed. "What's that?"_

_Chase looked back in amazement. "Wha?! You've NEVER heard of Pup Pup Boogie?! You're SO missing out! C'mon!"_

_Chase charged to the elevator in a hurry._

" _Hey, wait!" Marshall yelled after him, taking off running, only to step in one of the leftover bowls and be sent rolling into the elevator, crashing head-first into Chase._

" _Whoa! Aaaahhhhhhhhhh! UGH!!"_

" _Whoa! Marshall, are you OK?!" Ryder yelled in worry._

" _Oh, I'm fine." Marshall replied, laying across Chase's back. "I'm not too good at bowling, though."_

_This quip caused the whole room to burst out laughing before the elevator doors closed, and the two young pups ascended out of sight. Ash hadn't stopped laughing until the pups had fully disappeared._

" _Ahhhh… That boy takes after his mom more than he thinks..." Ash fondly sighed._

" _You sure he's OK?" Ryder asked._

" _That boy? Pfft. If there's two things he's got from his old dog, it's his hard head, and his, er, footwork. He's fine. He does it all the time and so do I. Trust me."_

" _Well, if you're sure… Anyway, got anything else you wanna talk about?"_

" _Ooh, grown-up talk, eh?" Ash gave a wide smirk. "Little young for that, aren't you, Ryder?"_

" _Huh? Wh-what does that mean?" Ryder gave a confused look._

" _Har har! Teasing! Teasing! Oh, you and that Chase… So serious..." Ash shook his head gently with a big smile. "I actually do have a few questions I wanna ask you now that you mention it..."_

" _Yeah? Fire away." Ryder got up and sat back down in his beanbag, ready to answer some questions of his own._


	4. Talks and Trials

"So what do YOU think Ryder and your dad talked about?" Chase asked.

"Probably about the plan for the next day." Marshall replied. "I mean, Ryder had to have known-"

The two pups continued their long chat with one another, unaware that they were being listened to from not too far away. With an ear pricked up, a certain cockapoo stood next to the Lookout's open door with a familiar chocolate labrador sat a little ways away from her. Even further away from that, Rocky and Rubble sat far away, watching intently.

"I can't really say, but..." Skye softly observed. "…it sounds like they're just… talking… That's it..."

"What do you think they're talking about?" Zuma asked. "Something huge, wight?"

"Its gotta be, but I can't make out what about." Skye replied. "Wish I knew, though. What could be worth talking about for forty-five whole minutes?"

"And skipping bweakfast, don't forget. If it keeps up, we should pwobably get Wyder."

"I don't think we should bother him just because they're talking. I'll see if I can make out anything else."

"...tells me he planned for me to make that choice." Marshall concluded.

"Yeah?" Chase replied. "So I'm thinking maybe the conversation went like this..."

* * *

" _I mostly wanna know a little more about yourself." Ash inquired. "What brings you to Adventure Bay?"_

" _My grandpa, actually." Ryder replied. "He's crazy rich. He's donated money to good causes all over the world and even been in charge of building rescue companies across the world. But... Recently, he got sick. REALLY sick. He… doesn't have long, now."_

_Ash gave a sympathetic whine. "I guess we're not the only ones who've lost family recently."_

" _So as his last act, he decided to set up a rescue group of his own. But since he won't be around to lead it, he chose me."_

" _You? But you can't be any older than… er, how old are you?"_

" _I'm five. But grandpa said this was a way to help me grow up as my own man. He said I was a smart kid for my age. He's even leaving all his money to me since I don't actually have a mom and dad."_

_Ash stared at Ryder in bewilderment. "This is a whole lot to put on the shoulders of a five year-old boy! Is your grandpa… well… all there?"_

_Ryder laughed. "Well, people always say my grandpa's eccentric."_

" _I can see why..." Ash mused._

" _I was wondering why grandpa chose to set up this new group in Adventure Bay, but with the story you just told me? It makes a lot more sense."_

" _So who else is gonna be part of this group?"_

" _Well… That's just it." Ryder sheepishly admitted. "Grandpa started me off with Chase, but… He said recruitment was up to me… All part of being a leader, he said. But he left me a load of blueprints for gear and vehicles to build."_

" _Wow… Talk about throwing you in at the deep end."_

" _You wanna know what's even funnier, though? They're all, well… pup-sized."_

" _Wait. So, Chase… ISN'T just a mascot?"_

" _Nope. This new group grandpa set up is meant to consist of dogs. And me."_

" _...well. I mean… firedogs took an active role in helping to extinguish fires here, but that's taking it to a whole new level… 'Eccentric' is right…" Suddenly, Ash's eyes shot open, as if an idea had just entered his head._

" _Say, Ryder. You're looking for recruits now, I'm guessing?" Ash asked with an intrigued expression._

" _Wasn't thinking about it right now." Ryder replied. "But have you got someone in mi-" Ryder froze as he realised what Ash was getting at. "Ohhhhhhh..."_

" _Looks like you get it." Ash grinned at Ryder. "My Marshall… The plan was always to raise him to become another firedog. As you've seen, he's always perky and full of beans. Plus, he's always ready to help. He's a fast runner, too. And your team would need a pup to fight fires, wouldn't it?"_

" _It sure would!" Ryder grew to like the idea the more Ash told him about it. "And he's been getting along with Chase so well! I can take him in right away!"_

_Ryder's face fell when Ash suddenly sucked in air through his teeth. "Well, that's where it gets tough, Ryder..." Ash admitted. "You see… Mayor Goodway was actually trying to help us find new owners for a while, and she told me today that she finally found some. A family of farmers, actually."_

" _Aww, that's great!" Ryder said with a smile. "But, how does that make it tough?"_

" _Well… They live really far up north. To the point that we'd never see Adventure Bay again once they come to collect us."_

" _...oh." Ryder deflated in a hurry._

" _And that's the problem. Marshall may not look it, but he loves this town. Its been his home for so long now. The air is clean, it's pretty quiet… And now he's really hit it off with Chase… He may not look it, but he's been so lonely for the past couple of months… The only other dog he's really had to talk to is me... Having to move… it would break his heart… But he probably wouldn't want to leave me, either."_

" _And… when's the family coming for you?"_

" _Friday."_

" _Does Marshall know?"_

" _Not yet. I was going to tell him when he came back from the pup park today… But now it's starting to look like he'll have to pick between me or the pair of you."_

" _And… what do you think he should pick?"_

" _Whatever makes him happy." Ash replied immediately. "Much though I want him to stay with me, he's found such a good friend here, and as I said, he loves Adventure Bay. Whatever he chooses, I'll support him as best I can. I'm his dad, aren't I?"_

_The pair stood in silence for a while, unable to find a means of continuing the conversation, until Ryder gasped and tapped his fist into his palm._

" _Ash. I've got an idea. You think Marshall would be a good fit for our team? How about we test that?"_

_Ryder went on to explain his plan to Ash for a while._

" _I get the feeling Marshall's gonna knock that one out of the park." Ash opined._

" _I guess we'll see tomorrow, right?" Ryder asked._

" _I taught that boy everything he knows. I know he can do it._

_Ryder smiled at Ash's vote of confidence in his son, thinking about how he didn't deserve to lose everything over the course of a couple of months._

" _I'm curious about something, Ash." Ryder couldn't keep it in any longer._

" _And what's that?" Ash replied._

" _You always seem so… cheerful. But you lost everything so quickly… How is it that you're still so energetic after all that?"_

_Ash went rigid. No-one had ever asked him that before. "Well…" he stuttered. "...no reason? I g-guess I'm just… well, uh… just a hale and hearty dog. N-nothing really to it."_

_Ryder went quiet, raising an eyebrow while giving Ash an unimpressed look._

" _...ugh, sharp eyes..." Ash conceded. "I'd be terrible at poker, huh? Truth is… Marshall is counting on me. I need to keep up my attitude for him. To lead by example. If I lost all hope… There's no telling how that boy might react..."_

" _Right… That makes much more sense."_

" _Plus, Willow wouldn't want me getting all depressed and downtrodden. Real go-getter, that woman. She'd want me to keep going. To push through whatever was in my way."_

" _Ash… I know you've been alone for a long time… You haven't had anyone to talk to about your problems… But while you're still here, if you need someone to hear you out..." Ryder laid a reassuring hand on Ash's head. "...you can always talk to me."_

_Ash went quiet for a while, contemplating what Ryder just said. Somehow, someone as kind as him moving into Adventure Bay seemed too good to be true. And yet, here he was, treating Ash and his son with more kindness than any human prior when they needed it the most. Unable to find the words to thank him properly, Ash simply resorted to licking Ryder's hand in gratitude, causing the boy to giggle uncontrollably._

_Suddenly, a crash rang out from the floor above them._

" _Whoa!" Ryder yelled. "The heck was that?!"_

" _I think I might know..." Ash replied with a smile, as they both stepped onto the elevator._

* * *

"So you think Ryder and dad just told each other about themselves?" Marshall asked.

"And then made the plan for what happened the next day." Chase replied. "I mean, they've gotta have known about each other, right? Why else would they put all that together for us?"

"I still don't know if I should've left dad behind..."

"Marshall, if your dad wanted you to come with him, why would he let you choose? I mean, it was a heck of a choice to make for a one-year old pup, but…" Chase gave Marshall a reassuring smile. "I don't know about you, but I think you made the right choice. And something tells me your dad thinks so, too."

"Guess so… Guess so." Marshall couldn't help but smile right back at Chase.

* * *

_Ryder and Ash had arrived up at the Lookout to find their two pups completely dazed and piled up on the floor next to the Pup Pup Boogie mats._

" _I'm… gluuuuuurrrrggghhh..." Marshall dreamily mumbled._

" _Blllllllrrgllllblaaagruuhhh…" Chase babbled._

" _Har! At least some of us were having fun!" Ash laughed._

" _Do I wanna know what the heck you two have been up to?" Ryder asked with an amused smile._

" _Boogableflufflefluh..." Marshall slurred._

" _Gaaaaaahhhiiiiiioooooo..." Chase added._

" _Ha ha, alright, dance boy." Ash laughed, walking over to the two pups. "I think its time we went to bed. It's starting to get late."_

" _Awwww..." Chase whined, recovering from the obvious crash earlier._

" _No need to get like that, Chase." Ryder added. "They could always sleep over if they wanted..."_

_Marshall gasped. "Can we, papa?! Can we?! Can we?! Pleeeeeease?!"_

_Ash laughed. "Alright, alright, little firecracker. Twist my arm, why don't you?"_

_The two pups cheered loudly at the news, prompting Ash to smile warmly. It had been a long time since he'd seen Marshall so happy. Deep down, he knew what the right choice for his son would be._

_That night, all was quiet. Marshall and Chase slept soundly in a pair of pet beds set up next to one another, with Ash sleeping in a pet bed not far from the pups. Ryder had gone to sleep in his own room, but not for long as he quietly descended the elevator and walked out of the door for about an hour._

_The next day had arrived. Chase and Marshall had woken up quickly, and wasted no time in running outside to play after Ryder had fed all three dogs once again. While Ryder went out to play frisbee with the pups, Ash had rather suspiciously elected to go for a walk by himself. Ryder nonetheless enjoyed himself with the two little bundles of energy for a long while until he was stopped by a sudden yelling._

" _Chase! Marshall! Ryder! Aaaagh-! OOF!" Ash voice suddenly cut through the air with an overtone of urgency, punctuated by him tripping and sliding forward on his face a little._

" _Ash? What's wrong? You look like you've seen a ghost." Ryder asked._

" _It's the old Coastguard HQ!" Ash exclaimed as he picked himself up. "It's on fire!"_

_The two pups gasped. "Fire?!" Marshall yelled._

" _Oh, no!" Chase added. "What do we do?!"_

" _We've gotta try and make sure everyone is safely away from it. Chase, it's time to go to work! Ash, Marshall, wait here until we come back, OK? C'mon, Chase!"_

_Ryder took off running to the scene of the fire, followed closely behind by Chase. For the first time since they got here, there was work to be done._

" _WAIT!" Marshall yelled after them, prompting them both to freeze and Ash to look at his son in surprise._

" _Mr. Ryder… Chase… Take me with you! Please!" Marshall pleaded._

" _Marshall… You realise you're asking to go with them to a fire, right?" Ash asked. "I know we're firedogs at heart, but… That's way too dangerous for a pup like you."_

" _But, papa! Chase isn't that much older than me! And you've said to me that when there's a fire we're always ready for a rescue! I'll be super-careful! Please, papa! Let me go with them!"_

_Ash stared down at the little dalmatian in surprise, before smiling widely. "That's my boy." Ash whispered. "You wanna go with them? Then quit dilly-dallying! Go get 'em!"_

" _Thank you, papa! Thank you!" Marshall barked excitedly, before running up to the eagerly-waiting Chase and Ryder._

" _Alright, Marshall." Ryder began. "If you wanna help, then stay close, and do EXACTLY as I say. Clear?"_

" _Yes, sir!" Marshall replied._

" _Then let's go!" Ryder yelled, turning around and continuing to run towards the fire, leaving Ash behind._

" _Well." Ash mused to himself. "That was easier than I thought. Let's see how that boy handles himself..."_

_The Coastguard HQ had been long abandoned. The building was incredibly rickety, to the point that the sign above it had simply read "AD_ENT_RE B_Y _OAST_UA_D" even before the building had lost its last member. Sadly, the only sign of human activity lately was the bright, orange glow inside the building's main lobby._

" _Hello?! Hey! Anyone in there?!" Chase yelled into the building as loudly as he could. When no response came, the shepherd sighed slightly with relief. "It doesn't sound like anyone's in there."_

" _Good. Little less pressure." Ryder concluded. "Now. We need to find a way of putting out this fire."_

" _Mr. Ryder? Do you know if there was power running to this building, lately?" Marshall asked._

" _Why do you ask, Marshall?" Ryder replied._

" _Because if this is an electric fire, we can't use water. Water and electricity don't mix, you know. If we use water, it might make the fire worse."_

_Ryder stared for a moment, impressed by the smarts of such a small pup. "Then we'd better try and use sand to smother the fire, just in case. You never know. But first, we need to make sure everyone is safely away from the scene. Chase, you go warn everyone to stay back. Marshall, go find us some buckets._

" _I'm on it!" Chase barked._

" _Gotcha!" Marshall replied._

_The pups took off running in opposite directions. Chase to the left towards the forming crowd and Marshall to the right towards the beach._

" _Everyone! Stay back!" Chase yelled at the crowd. "Don't come any closer! The fire's too dangerous!"_

_To Chase's surprise, the crowd started to back away. "That's it! Get back! Get too close and you might get hurt!"_

_Chase continued to run back and forth in front of the crowd, barking orders for them to stay back. Inside, he felt a sense of authority welling up. "Say… I could get used to this..." Chase thought._

_Back at the beach, Marshall had found three buckets on the beach. All relatively small, but working between them, they would be able to easily throw enough sand onto the medium-sized fire on the floor._

" _Mishter Wyder! I gho- whoawhoawhoaaaa!" Marshall called out to Ryder, only to lose his balance mid-run and roll to a halt in front of Ryder with one of the buckets lodged on his head._

" _Oh, no! I'm sorry, Mr. Ryder!" Marshall sheepishly apologised._

" _No, no, Marshall. It's fine." Ryder gently reassured the pup. "You got what we needed. So all we need to do is fill these with sand and throw them on the fire. You fill the buckets and I'll throw them."_

" _You got it!"_

_Marshall set to work shovelling sand into the buckets with his paws as Ryder slowly opened the door to the fire, coughing from the smoke scorching his lungs. Ryder stared for a little while, before steeling himself and reaching to down to pick up one of Marshall's buckets before flinging its contents at the flames with all of his might._

_Marshall hurried to fill as many of the three buckets as he could, though being one pup, he struggled to keep pace with Ryder picking up and throwing the contents of the buckets at the fire. But despite this, the fire was slowly dying off._

" _Ryder, sir!" Chase yelled, running back from where the crowd was gathering. "Everyone's gone, now! Do you need anything from me?"_

" _Great timing, Chase! Marshall needs help filling these buckets! You take one and let him fill the other." Ryder commanded._

" _You got it!" Chase responded, moving to an empty bucket that Marshall wasn't filling and shovelling sand into it as fast as possible with his paws._

_The process continued for a few minutes, and slowly but surely, the raging fire died down. While they could have used water on the fire, Marshall's advice meant that they took a 'better safe than sorry' approach. The less risk they could take, the better. Eventually, after a long period of throwing sand into buckets and throwing that same sand at the fire, there was nothing left but smoke. The flames had been smothered by the golden sand of the beach. The fire was over, leaving a large smouldering patch in its wake. The boy and the two pups stared at their handiwork for a long time before their fatigue caught up with them, causing Ryder to sink to his knees and Chase and Marshall to drop to their bellies, all three of them breathing heavily._

* * *

"Heh heh… Can't believe THAT rescue gave us trouble..." Marshall mused.

"Yeah, well, we were only little pups..." Chase replied. "We have more training and gear now. And we've grown up a lot more… some of us more than others." Chase directed a smirk at his friend.

"Says the one who still sometimes sleeps with Officer Bear."

Chase's eyes shot open. "Hey! That's playing dirty!"

"Don't play with fire unless you wanna get burned, Chasey-boy."

"How long have you been sleeping with Captain Cuddly, again?" Chase demanded with a pout.

"I can't remember, but at least I admit it." Marshall smirked straight back at Chase.

Chase snarled in irritation, before deciding to get back to the story.


	5. A Sadistic Choice

" _We… We… did it?" Chase panted._

" _The… fire's… gone..." Marshall wheezed._

" _I… sorta… can't believe it." Ryder gasped. "But… We did it… Pups… That was a great job…" Ryder turned towards the tiny dalmatian. "But especially you, Marshall."_

" _Huh? Me?" Marshall asked._

" _When I asked you to get those buckets, you didn't waste any time at all, and that advice you gave us about the fire? Gotta say, we could use a noggin like that." Ryder reached over and playfully rubbed Marshall's head. "And the both of you were great when you were filling those buckets. Thanks to you, we put that fire out nice and quick. And Chase?" Ryder turned towards the shepherd. "Good job keeping the crowd away, too. I heard what you were saying when I was getting the sand together. You're a natural!"_

_Chase simply gave a bashful grin in response._

" _You've both been such good pups!" Ryder concluded, reaching out and scratching them both behind the ears, a gesture greatly appreciated by the pair of them. This kept up until the sound of someone clapping broke them up._

" _My goodness, that was exciting! You three are very good at this!"_

_Upon turning around, the trio saw who the deep, feminine voice belonged to. A plump, dark-skinned woman of middling height with dark hair, dressed in blue, and oddly enough, carrying a purse with a chicken poking out of it._

" _Ah, Mayor Goodway!" Ryder greeted the woman. "Glad you liked the show!"_

" _Watching you three work was really something! I'd say the town's future is in VERY good hands with people like you around!"_

" _Er, Mr. Ryder? Who's this?" Marshall piped up._

" _Oh yeah." Ryder briefly facepalmed upon realising that he forgot to introduce the woman. "Pups, Mayor Goodway. Mayor Goodway, pups."_

" _And this is my darling Chickaletta." Mayor Goodway gestured to the chicken in her purse, who briefly clucked. Marshall and Chase stared for a little while before turning their attention back to Ryder._

" _You might be wondering why she's here and what she's talking about." Ryder explained. "Well, this was actually all a test. A test that she helped me set up."_

" _The old Coastguard building was condemned a little while ago." Mayor Goodway added. "It was all set to be knocked down in a couple of weeks from now. All the better for a little 'test fire', hm?"_

"' _Test'?" Chase echoed. "What was this a test for?"_

" _For Marshall." Ryder answered, causing Marshall to stop dead. "This was all a test to see if Marshall was fit to join our little team or not."_

_Marshall suddenly felt far more nervous. "D… D-did… Did I… pass?" he stuttered nervously._

" _Did you pass?! You better believe it!" Ryder excitedly replied. "You were quick, brave, smart, everything that a member of this team would need!"_

" _Ah, but Ryder..." Mayor Goodway interrupted. "I don't suppose you've thought of a name for this team of yours?"_

" _Er, uh..." Ryder stammered. "Well, no, but… Look, I'll think about it later."_

" _You… want me to… join you?" Marshall asked, the excitement in his voice growing with each word._

" _You were really, really good at it!" Chase added. "Please join the team! Pleeeeeeeaaase!"_

" _...guys, I… I'd love-"_

" _Sorry to be a party pooper, son, but it's not gonna be such a simple choice."_

_The familiar low, raspy voice immediately got everyone's attention. They all turned to see Ash coming down the beach with a strangely-serious expression on his face._

" _Papa?" Marshall said._

" _Look. I'm proud of you, pup. I really am." Ash began. "For your first fire, you handled that one beautifully. I always knew you had it in you." Ash walked up and licked his son on the cheek. "But… I've been meaning to tell you this for a long while… But Mayor Goodway over here found us new owners… But they live really far away… If you went with them, you..." Ash sighed heavily. "...you'd never see Adventure Bay again."_

" _WHAT?!!" Marshall and Chase both yelled._

" _B-b-b-but but but…" Chase stammered. "You can't leave!" He turned to Marshall with a pleading look. "We just met each other!"_

_Ryder could only look on sadly while Marshall got a look not dissimilar to a deer in the beam of a pair of headlights._

" _I'm sorry, Chase." Ash went on. "We still have until Friday until we get picked up._

" _Please, Mr. Ash!" Chase begged with a look of genuine desperation. "Don't go! Marshall's such a nice pup! And he'd be a really, really good member of our team!"_

" _Easy, tiger." Ash calmly replied. "I have to go to these new owners. But Marshall doesn't."_

" _Huh?" Marshall said._

" _Marshall. I know this is a big choice. But you're growing up, now. So I'm letting you choose. You can come with me, or you can stay here."_

" _I've… gotta… choose?"_

" _It's not like you've gotta make up your mind now. But you have to choose by Friday. It's entirely up to you. You can come with me and stay with your old family. Or..." Ash smiled as he gestured towards Chase and Ryder. "You can stay here, and be part of a new one."_

" _B-but… papa..." Marshall had started to cry. "I really wanna stay in Adventure Bay… But… I-I… I don't wanna leave you, either! I don't wanna let you go!"_

" _Don't cry now, Marshall." Ash soothingly whispered, nuzzling his son. "I'm still your dad no matter what you choose. Think long and hard about it, and I'll support you no matter what."_

_A long while had passed of Marshall surveying the landscape. Ryder and Mayor Goodway gave him a look of sympathy. Chase simply looked pleading and Ash gave his pup a look of quiet understanding. Eventually, Ash excused the pair of them and they left back to the dilapidated firehouse, telling Chase and Ryder that they'd let them know of Marshall's decision, leaving a distraught Chase and worried Ryder behind them. Marshall may not have been his pup, but Ryder was feeling worried about him already._

" _Ryder, sir?" Chase began sadly. "Marshall's gonna join us… He's gotta… Right?"_

" _Now, now, Chase." Ryder tried to soothe the pup. "This is Marshall's choice, not ours. But I'm sure he'll choose what's best for him..."_

_The rest of the day had passed quietly for both parties. Chase had been sad and sluggish all throughout the day, barely responding to Ryder and not even wanting to to play with him. Chase was simply too upset at the prospect of making a new friend, only to have him taken away in the space of a few days. Marshall, in the meantime, had gone right back to his quiet, introverted self. He remained in the old firehouse for the rest of the day with barely a peep coming from him. Even when Ash had found a few scraps for them to eat, Marshall didn't even partake. The spectre of such a huge choice in his life continued to loom large over him all the way until Ash had tucked him into bed for the night._

* * *

"Geez..." Chase sighed. "What a choice for a one-year old pup to make..."

"What a choice for ANY pup to make..." Marshall replied. "I think I would have struggled with a choice like that even now."

"It's too bad owners were found for you at such a bad time… If that news came a little later, that would've saved a lot of tears, don't you think?"

"Yeah… But I guess at least dad didn't choose for me, right?"

"Your dad wasn't really in a good place, either. I'm sure he knew that having to leave would crush you no matter what you chose. You'd either leave him, or you'd leave us."

"You know, thinking about it, I think dad wanted me to stay here..."

"From what you've told me before? It sure sounds like it. I mean, not that I'd know, but parents want what's best for their kids." Chase gave Marshall another reassuring smile. "And I think your dad knew what'd be best for you."

* * *

_That night, Ash found himself stirred from his rest by a familiar sound. The sound of Marshall crying. Usually, Marshall only came to him in the night in tears if he'd had a bad dream. But something told Ash that Marshall hadn't gotten so much as a wink. And that he knew full-well what had his son crying this time. Slowly, Ash's eyes drifted open and he shifted in his old, tattered pet bed._

" _P… P-papa..." Marshall sobbed._

" _Oh, Marshall..." Ash groggily whispered. "Bad dream?"_

" _...n-no..."_

" _Didn't think so. C'mere, little fella..."_

_The crying dalmatian quickly ran into the waiting arms of his father, lying with his face buried in Ash's chest and sobbing even harder as Ash curled around his son._

" _I can't do it, papa!" Marshall wept. "I c-can't choose! I-I don't wanna leave you! I don't want you to g… g-go! I… want us to… stay together!"_

" _Don't you want to stay in Adventure B-?" Ash asked gently, before being cut off by Marshall._

" _YES!!" Marshall screamed. "I don't wanna leave! I wanna stay here! Chase and Ryder are so nice to me! And Adventure Bay is… is… a great place! But I don't wanna leave you, papa! I don't want you to go! It… It… IT'S NOT FAIR! IT'S JUST NOT FAIR!"_

_Now Marshall was openly bawling. Ash feared that it might come to this. Even he might have struggled if he was in his son's lack-of-shoes. He knew that this would be a hard choice to make for any pup, not just Marshall. As headstrong as Chase seemed earlier, this kind of choice between old and new families would probably be hard for him, too. But deep down, Ash knew what the best choice for Marshall would be. Even if Marshall couldn't see it, Ash knew where his calling lay. But right now, he wouldn't be able to get through to him. Ash's first objective was to calm Marshall down a little._

" _Shhh… Don't cry, Marshall… Just take a few deep breaths… Papa's here… It's OK..."_

_Ash punctuated his comforting words with gentle nuzzles and licks. He wasn't any stranger to having to calm his son whenever he had bad dreams, but this was a far weightier matter than a few night terrors. As such, Marshall took far longer to calm down than usual. But eventually, Marshall's crying was reduced to nothing more than periodic sniffles and hiccups. After a few minutes, Ash saw that Marshall was finally calm enough to listen to what he had to say._

"… _I'm not always gonna be around, Marshall..." Ash whispered. "I mean, I thought your mother was going to be around forever, but I was completely wrong about that..."_

_Marshall didn't reply. He just lay nestled in his father's chest and whimpered._

" _I know how much you love this town. And I saw you tearing up that fire with Chase and Ryder earlier. Everyone has their place somewhere. And if you think that this is yours, well, that'd be just fine."_

" _But, papa-!"_

" _I'm your dad. It doesn't matter what you pick..." Ash leaned in closer to Marshall. "...I will NEVER stop loving you. It's my job to support you no matter what you choose. Stay with me, or go with Ryder: you're still the same Marshall I've known and loved since you were born. And my view of you won't change because of what you pick."_

_These words seemed to help calm Marshall down. If nothing else, Marshall's breathing had slowed back down, even if he still refused to say a word, remaining with his face buried in Ash's chest._

" _You still have time to make your decision, pup." Ash whispered. "But whatever you choose: Papa's behind you all the way. And I'm always with you, even if I'm not here."_

_With Marshall now lying there quietly, Ash waited for a moment to pose his next question._

" _Doing OK, little firecracker?"_

"… _I'm good." Marshall whispered drowsily, if flatly._

_With these words, Ash curled tightly around his son and finally saw fit to go back to sleep, content that Marshall had calmed down enough. But something told Ash that he'd helped to make Marshall's mind up. He nodded off with a prayer that he'd helped make Marshall's choice less painful._

_As the sun continued to climb through the sky, Ash managed to open his eyes to find that Marshall had already gotten up. A brief, panicked look around revealed that he'd simply made his way to the nearby window and was sat calmly in front of it, staring out in the direction of the town._

" _Ohhhh… Marshall..." Ash sighed in relief. "Are you… doing alright?"_

_Marshall waited for a short while before answering, without looking at him. "Papa… I've decided."_

_Over at the Lookout, Chase, laying on a distant grassy bank, was still feeling down at the prospect of making and losing a friend so quickly. Ryder could only be worried for Chase. As much as Ryder wanted Marshall to join them too, he was more concerned about the impact of Marshall's departure on Chase. The first pup that Chase had really gotten on with and now there was a chance that that pup could disappear in a few days? It was all too sad for him to think about._

_Ryder decided to try and take his mind off of things by going over some more blueprints left by his grandfather. In his usual spot in front of the tower, Ryder swiped through the oddly-designed backpacks. He was particularly intrigued by one filled with tools like screwdrivers and hammers. However, his train of thought was derailed by the sound of paws approaching the chair._

" _Huh? Oh, hey, Chase. What's u-" Ryder cut himself off mid-sentence, barely noticing until he lowered the Pup Pad that the paws he heard didn't belong to Chase. They instead belonged to a pair of dalmatians._

" _Hey! Ash! Marshall!" Ryder smiled widely upon seeing the two again, putting the Pup Pad on the chair and kneeling down._

" _Hey, Ryder." Ash greeted the boy. "Sorry for running off on you like that yesterday. But Marshall needed a little time to think. And he asked to come here to tell everyone what he decided. And I think Chase will want to hear this too, y'know?"_

_Inside, Ryder's hopes were rising. Why else would Marshall ask to come to the Lookout to reveal his decision? But deep down, there was still the lingering doubt that he may have come to say his final goodbye. Ryder was a little concerned that he may be giving Chase false hope, but he still took a deep breath and called for his pup._

" _Chase? We've got visitors!" Ryder yelled._

_It took a little while, but Chase slowly came around the corner, dragging his paws across the floor the entire time, clearly still feeling down. However, once he lifted his head, his spirits raised immediately._

" _Marshall! Hey!" Chase immediately ran over to the dalmatians, tail wagging the entire time._

" _Chase. Marshall says that he's made his mind up." Ryder explained._

" _You have?!" Chase replied. "Are you gonna join us?!"_

_Silence. Marshall stayed silent for a second or two long enough to make Chase's face fall._

" _Well..." Marshall began. "I've thought about it… and I really REALLY don't wanna leave papa… I mean… he's always been there for me since we lost mama..."_

_This was enough to cause Ryder to look on sadly and Chase to stare at the floor, looking on the verge of tears._

" _...but..."_

_Marshall's next word caused the opposite reaction, suddenly having the two's undivided attention._

" _...I realised… I still love Adventure Bay. It's been my home since I was born. And people here can be really nice..."_

" _Well, MOST of them..." Chase thought to himself, still feeling anger prickling away inside him in regards to Marshall's treatment before they arrived._

" _...and when I put that fire out with you two… well, papa told me that if my place is here, then that'd be just fine… And I think that even if papa has to go somewhere else, I still belong here helping people."_

_There was a brief pause._

" _Marshall… does that mean..." Ryder asked, his spirits quickly rising._

" _Mr. Ryder… please… say you have room for a fire pup…" Marshall looked up with a surprisingly determined gaze. "...I wanna join you!"_

* * *

**Author's Note:**

> Greetings, all. I don't know if anyone's out there, but here's another one of my fics from FFN. I wanted to upload this one since I, suprisingly, have something new in the pipeline. But in order for it to make sense, I have to upload this first, even though I'm going to try and cover my bases enough that it won't be an absolute necessity to read this. But if I've got your attention, then please, stay a while!
> 
> I'm going to aim to get this fully uploaded by mid-to-late March. Not sure if I'll have much of a pattern, but I'm going to give it a good go. That's about all from me. If you happen to read this, then please, enjoy.


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